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| d. Estonia |
| 1989, Nov |
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| The Estonian Supreme Soviet declared the republic “sovereign.” | 1 |
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| 1990, May |
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| Estonia moved toward independence. On May 8, the Estonian Supreme Soviet restored five key articles of its 1938 constitution and changed its name to the Republic of Estonia. It also abolished the state emblem, flag, and anthem of Soviet Estonia. On May 14, Gorbachev issued decrees outlawing the independence declaration of Estonia, asserting that it violated the USSR constitution and the laws of April 30, 1990. | 2 |
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| 1991, March 3 |
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| The Estonian government refused to take part in the all-union referendum held by the Soviet Union and held its own, asking if voters were in favor of a restoration of state independence. The official results showed nearly 78 percent in favor with an 83 percent voter turnout. | 3 |
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| Aug. 20 |
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| Estonia declared its independence from the Soviet Union. | 4 |
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| Sept. 6 |
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| The State Council of the Soviet Union voted unanimously to recognize the independence of the republics of Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia. | 5 |
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| Nov. 6 |
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| The Estonian parliament voted to reinstate the 1938 Law on Citizenship, which gave automatic citizenship to all Estonians, set a two-year waiting period for immigrants, and granted citizenship to those married to Estonians. | 6 |
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| Jan. 23 |
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| The government resigned after failing to convince the Supreme Council (parliament) to impose a state of emergency because of severe shortages of oil, grain, and raw materials. Food rationing was introduced as a result of Russia's failure to maintain agreed supplies. A new caretaker government was created under Prime Minister Tiit Vahi (Jan. 30). | 7 |
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| April 6 |
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| Jaan Manitski was endorsed by the Supreme Council as the new foreign minister, replacing Lennart Meri. | 8 |
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| June 28 |
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| The Constituent Assembly drafted a constitution that provided for a parliamentary system with a strong presidency. | 9 |
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| Sept. 20 |
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| In Estonia's first postindependence elections, the right-wing nationalist fatherland group (Isamaa) and other right-wing parties won a strong position in the Supreme Council. In the presidential elections, no candidate gained an overall majority. | 10 |
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| Oct. 5 |
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| Lennart Meri, former foreign minister, was elected president by the Supreme Council. | 11 |
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